How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
To fulfill my responsibility as a revolutionary, I listed all my teachers. One by one, I considered them carefully. Unfortunately, none of them seemed to hate the Party or oppose Chairman Mao. I could not write a da-zi-bao about any of them. (3.21)
When everyone is writing da-zi-baos, Ji-li has nothing to write about her teachers. She doesn't want any of them to get in trouble for things they haven't even done, yet she's told (by her classmates) that this is her duty—she must do it. Ji-li is torn between what she knows is right and what she's told her duty is to her country.
Quote #5
"Now listen. What I want you to know is, whether or not your Grandpa was a landlord or an exploiter, it isn't your responsibility. Even I don't have a clear memory of him, so it doesn't have to matter to you at all. You can still hold your heads up. Understand?" (4.42)
Ji-li's dad tries to comfort her about her family's past, but it's not of much use. He might claim it's not her responsibility, but everyone blames her all the same for where she comes from. It soon becomes her duty to denounce her family and their so-called wicked ways, according to the Red Guards.
Quote #6
There was a tension in the air that even we children felt. The newspapers and radio were full of the campaign to "Destroy the Four Olds." The campaign had been expanded to eliminate personal possessions. "If we do not completely eliminate the roots, the plant will grow back," we heard. (6.2)
This is what Ji-li is talking about later on when she says they were brainwashed. Everywhere they turn, the people are bombarded with propaganda about their duty to the country. On the list? Getting rid of old stuff, reporting their friends' actions to the Red Guards, and changing their speech and behavior.